Franklin, London, and the Job I Almost Said No To feat. Amplificador: Before the Brand Had a Name

Adventures of All Sizes
Written By Coach Vida

The first time I visited I saw Ben Franklin’s face was on the streets of London. His portrait was everywhere, like a quiet little wink just for me. No one else in my travel group mentioned it, but every time I saw him, I smiled. That trip was noisy and fast and full of other people’s needs. The Franklin sightings were mine.

A year later, after a streak of heartbreaks and unexpected life shifts, I got booked for a last-minute job I didn’t want. It was a late-night event. I quoted my highest rate thinking they’d say no but they paid instantly, before the job even. I was booked!

Coach Formie and I already had plans that night. I hate flaking. But I said, “Let’s do our plans. Then come with me to this job. You can sit and watch.”

It turned out to be a speaker event. A book talk. And the book? It was about Benjamin Franklin. That was the start.

The event before it started

The author was charismatic, full of Hollywood polish, and the book followed his own journey retracing Franklin’s steps. I bought it. I wanted to like it. But the only parts I truly loved were about Franklin. The author’s story? I started crossing it out X literally X and came back only to read the Franklin passages.

I didn’t connect with the narrator. I connected with the legacy. It wasn’t the storyteller who moved me. It was Franklin.

Ben Franklin I have tried to look in your eyes trying to see what you saw

Before I knew what FormaFit would become, I packed its very first preworkout bottle into my suitcase and took it to London. No launch, no label deals, no sales strategy, just movement. I didn’t even get a picture of Franklin, but I got pics of that bottle. On bike racks, in parks, on cracked sidewalks and train platforms. It moved with me.

This trip was layered: a moment of transformation, tension, and clarity. I almost said no to the job that followed. I almost didn’t share this story at all. But here it is now. no longer quiet. Just real.

Did you know Ben Franklin’s purse is on display at the Natural History Museum in London? It was at the very front when I visited, before the book, before the talk that sparked my curiosity and fandom. I remember seeing it in awe. It was so old it was hard to make out exactly. And I hoped to see something in it , not a thing, but a clue. Little did I know then, that I would later wish to have seen it with these new eyes, and this new awareness. Because I love the idea of Ben Franklin. I love how relentless he was. I love how National Treasure he was in real life.

Visit The Natural History Museum of London

Also about Ben Franklin:

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Coach Vida

Coach Vida is the voice behind FormaFit Active a movement journal rooted in mindful motion, real gear, cultural pride, and showing up without apology.
She believes in slow mornings, walking when it hurts, and building strength that feels like freedom.

Her motto: You don’t have to look like an athlete to move like one.

She writes from Los Angeles, with a speaker clipped on and sunscreen always in the bag. This journal is for anyone reclaiming energy, stretch by stretch.

Coach Vida es la voz detrás de FormaFit Active, un diario de movimiento con raíces en el cuerpo, la cultura y la intención.
Cree en moverse con calma, en estirarse cuando duele, y en la fuerza como libertad.

Su lema: No tienes que parecer atleta para moverte como uno.

Escribe desde Los Ángeles, con su bocina a un lado y bloqueador en la mochila.
Este espacio es para quienes se están reclamando, paso a paso.

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Two Authors in a Waiting Room